A LOW-level drug runner from Keighley who unwittingly sold a single wrap of cocaine to an undercover police officer has been spared an immediate jail sentence.

As he handed over the drugs Adil Khan gave the customer his personal phone number for future orders in what was described as an unsophisticated act.

Khan, 21, of Holker Street, was snared as part of a large-scale West Yorkshire Police operation that was set up to target Class A drug-dealing in Keighley and Skipton.

He is the latest dealer to appear at Bradford Crown Court.

His Honour Judge Colin Burn referred to the “corrosive” effects of the drug trade on towns like Keighley, its citizens, and first-time offenders like Khan who often find it hard to escape the clutches of organised gangs.

He commented: “Somebody higher up the chain has lost money as a result of an arrest and once that person or persons have got their hooks into somebody it’s very difficult for them to get out.

“And, of course, you get this cycle of people who offend for the first time and then they come back again. They are simply unable to avoid getting drawn back into it.”

Prosecutor Philip Adams said an undercover officer ordered half a gram of cocaine via a call to the “Holker” line on the afternoon of July 13 last year.

He arranged to meet the supplier and received a call from the “Holker” line saying the runner could see him – a reference to Khan who was delivering the drugs.

Khan handed over a clingfilm wrap of cocaine for £50.

Mr Adams said: “Then he passed his own telephone number onto [the undercover officer] and said that he could contact him in future and that he would be able to supply him with some crack cocaine.”

Khan was identified via covert footage and linked via his address and email to the phone number he had provided. He was arrested on April 23 this year when his address was searched. Police recovered £1,925 in cash.

In an interview, Khan answered “no comment” to questions about drugs supply, but said the money found in his home was wages from legitimate work.

In a statement read to the court Inspector John Barker, who heads Keighley Neighbourhood Policing Team, said criminal damage and public order offences in Keighley over the past two years appeared to be linked to drug-dealing.

He said concerns are regularly expressed to him by members of the public who want the police to do more to eradicate this behaviour and highlighted the significant impact that the supply of Class A drugs is having on people in Keighley.

Mr Adams said there was no evidence that Khan was taking calls for drug orders and that he was merely a runner. The other man on the “Holker” line remains unidentified.

Khan later pleaded guilty to supplying a controlled drug of Class A, cocaine.

Mitigating, Clare Walsh said Khan had worked in security and as a taxi driver, was of previous good character, and that his risk of re-offending was very low. He urged Judge Burn to “pull back” from immediate custody.

She said: “He fell in with the wrong crowd. He went from what was social use to, very quickly, addiction that he could no longer sustain or fund.

“He found himself in debt and the time that he capitulated and agreed to deal was the time when it was [selling to] an undercover police officer.”

The court heard that Khan’s debt had since been settled by his father and that Khan was “ashamed” for affecting his family with his drugs arrest.

Taking account of Khan’s age, his previous good character, and the low level of his offending, Judge Burn sentenced him to two years in prison suspended for two years.

He said he must undertake 15 rehabilitation activity requirement days that included a drug rehabilitation programme, and carry out 180 hours of unpaid work in the community.

As he was sentenced Khan said: “I promise I will do my best. You won’t see me again.”